


That Song We Play

by RonRos47



Category: The Fosters (TV 2013)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2020-07-25 13:47:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20026816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RonRos47/pseuds/RonRos47
Summary: A song from long ago brings back a love that still existed deep at it's core.





	That Song We Play

**Author's Note:**

> You guys know Brallie is my endgame. That'll never change.

Callie froze as Eliza presented the ring to the family. She was shocked, having not expected something so soon. Callie wanted to be happy for Brandon but how could she when she was still in love with him? There it was. The words she had tried desperately to push down but had failed to do so.

Callie tried to smile, tried to put on a brave front and she wondered if anyone could see past her façade. It’s not like there was anything she could do to prevent it and she was not about to sabotage the engagement, not when he looked so happy. That’s all she wanted even if it hurt her.

The family was as surprised as she was especially since the couple had only known each other for three months but sometimes if you were lucky that’s all it took right? A single glance, a single moment. Callie tried to get that night out of her head, that night they’d first met but it was too late the memory was already stuck in her head, clear as it was supposed to be now. Supposed to be. She tried to bring herself back into the moment to gather the strength from the family’s joy and excitement. Mariana and the rest of them had been talking but their voices were drowned out. It’s like they were in a cloud, her vision blurred.

She thought she saw Brandon look at her but maybe that had all been part of the false memory that was forming in her mind. People did that, their minds created false memories to override the painful ones.

What made this all the more difficult was that these thoughts were happening in a single moment as the family gathered around in joy and congratulatory sentiments. 

Callie let out a fake smile when it was her turn to go to Brandon. She hugged him of course but even that felt fake.

“Congrats, Brandon, I’m happy for you,” she said to him falsely.

Brandon smiled at her though to Callie his smile felt false too. They looked at each other for a single moment at least it seemed that way, now she was really imagining things.

“Thanks,” he said pulling her out of the moment.

That was the end of it. The final piece of a lifetimes worth of the love that had happened between them. It was over pure and simple. It had been for a very, very long time, this only confirmed it for good and because this time it was permanent. Maybe that was a good thing.

*****

“I haven’t seen you play that in a long time,” Mariana said later that evening when she came into her and Callie’s room.

Callie put her guitar on her bed.

“Yeah well I figured what the hell.”

“It’s a nice song. Did you just write it?”

“I’m just strumming, Mariana, it’s no big deal.”

“Well whatever it is, it’s really good. You should play more. Maybe add in some lyrics. I’m sure Brandon could help you out with that part-,” Callie looked at her sister for a second but tried her best to hide the look on her face. “Or not,” said Mariana. “I am sorry, Callie.”

“For what?”

“For picking out the ring for Eliza.”

“Why are you apologizing to me?"

“Because it should be you.”

Callie froze for a second, “What are you-“

“Oh come on,” Mariana said in a whisper, “you know I should be picking out the ring for you instead of her. You and Brandon-,”

“Are over.”

“Who are you kidding it’s not over, it’s never been over.”

“Of course it has. Why do you even care anyways?”

“I care because I’m your sister.”

“And he’s my brother.”

“Well I think that’s a load of crap and so do you. You love him, Callie, always have.”

Callie took a deep breath. Mariana was starting to pick at the scabs, the ones she’d picked herself earlier and ones that were now starting to open.

She shook her head and placed her guitar on its stand.

“Well it doesn’t matter now does it?”

“If it doesn’t matter than why the drawing?”

Callie looked over at the drawing on her desk. It was a broken guitar and broken piano, it’s pieces scattered and some of the pieces together. She’d drawn it earlier and had completely forgotten about it.

“That’s you and Brandon isn’t it?”

Callie got up and crumbled it throwing it in the trash.

“It’s just a drawing.”

“Doesn’t look like it.”

“Mariana, just stop. I can’t talk about this anymore. It hurts too much alright.”

“Well at least you’re admitting that at least.”

“Goodnight, Mariana,” she said as she got under her covers and turned to face the wall.”

“Yeah, goodnight,” Mariana replied back and did the same. 

Now what Mariana couldn’t see were the tears streaming down her face. Tears she didn’t want but tears she couldn’t control either.

*****

Over the past couple of days all that was talked about was the wedding. Stef and Lena had asked, wondered really, why they didn’t want to wait. Brandon and Eliza had just gotten engaged two days ago and already wedding plans were being made.

“Why B,” Stef asked. “Why now, you two are so young, why not have a long engagement. You know wait I don’t know, at least three months, maybe five.”

“It’s what Eliza wants,” Brandon answered.

“Is that what you want,” Lena asked.

“I want her to be happy.”

Stef looked at him, “but is that what you want?”

Brandon glanced up at Callie who was getting some orange juice from the fridge. She looked back at him for a quick moment before closing it with a sound before going to get a glass. Brandon didn’t answer right away.

“Brandon?”

Brandon focused on his moms. 

“What, I’m sorry.”

“Is it what you want,” asked Stef, “do you want to get married so quickly? I’m sure Eliza would understand.”

Brandon shook his head. “Trust me she wouldn’t.”

Lena looked at him, “So are you saying you don’t want to get married right away?”

“I kind of have to,” he answered.

Stef and Lena looked at each other as Brandon quickly stole another glance at Callie who had already finished her glass and was looking back at him.

“Meaning,” asked Stef.

He shook his head again, “Meaning I should probably go do something useful before Eliza bites my head off.”

Once Brandon was gone Lena and Stef returned to the kitchen and saw Callie standing at the sink, looking out the window.

“Cal,” said Stef, “I’m pretty sure that glass is clean.”

Callie looked down to the sponge she had in her hand rubbing it against the glass not even realizing or how hard she was rubbing against it.

“Right,” Callie said getting out of herself, washing her hands and then going to place the glass in the cupboard.

“Are you okay?” Stef asked.

“I’m fine,” she answered.

Lena and Stef looked at each other and then back at their daughter, “What is it with you kids, anytime you, anytime anyone says ‘I’m fine,’ we all know something is not just ‘fine’. What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Callie replied. “Just stressed out with school you know, trying to get those internships.”

“Well I’m sure you will. You’ve already got a 3.9 GPA,” said Lena.

“Yeah but it’s not a 4. I can do better.”

Stef smiled and kissed Callie on her forehead, “We know you can, sweetie. Just don’t push yourself too hard. Try to have some fun and with this wedding hopefully you’ll be able to relax some.”

“Yeah,” Callie said as she began to walk away, “hopefully.”

*****

Later that day Callie was just coming downstairs and Brandon was coming up. They were both busy on their phones that they failed to look up and when they did they both said excuse me and then went the same way, blocking each other.

“So um,” said Brandon, “this isn’t going to be weird is it?”

“Why would it be weird?”

“Well it’s just that I’m marrying Eliza and I know that we-,”

“Brandon, it’s fine. No weirdness. I mean is it going to be weird for you?”

“No, no I guess I just thought-,”

“Yeah me too but it’s fine right, I mean it has to be.”

“Right. So no weirdness.”

“Definitely no weirdness.”

“Okay then.”

“Okay.”

Neither of them moved, they just looked at each other.

“I should probably-,” said Callie.

“Yeah, yeah me too.”

They again moved in the same direction, blocking each other. They laughed it off and then moved out of each other’s way. Once they were away they both took a deep breath. They’d said it wouldn’t be weird but how could it not be? They had both just felt it and they couldn’t ignore it but they had to, it was what was best for everyone, themselves included. It had to be.

*****

Another day came and went. Another day of trying to avoid each other, of trying to focus on other assignments. 

Eliza was already starting to come up with ideas for the wedding dress and bridesmaids dresses, ideas which Callie hated and she wasn’t the only one. Mariana wasn’t too fond of the dress either. Callie could care less about the dress Eliza picked for herself but she wasn’t about to subject to some stupid peach frilly one. That just wasn’t her thing. She’d told Eliza as much, harshly in fact, too harshly.

“Callie, come on,” said Mariana, “it’s not that bad. We can, we can make it work.”

“Make it work?” asked Callie, “this thing will never work, it just won’t and I’m not going to stand here and pretend like it will.”

Mariana looked at Callie knowing full well that’s not what Callie was talking about. 

“You really hate it that much,” Eliza said with a sadness to her tone.

“No,” Mariana answered for her, “No, she doesn’t.”

“Really because it sure sounds like it.”

“You know what,” Callie said raising her hands, “it doesn’t even matter.”

“I’m getting married of course it matters.”

“Sure maybe to you.”

“Callie,” Mariana warned.

“Sorry, I’m just tired. Look I’ll do this another day okay, just not today.”

“What’s wrong with today?”

Mariana gave an awkward laugh, “you know how it is. It’s just one of those days. PMS is a bitch right?”

Callie rolled her eyes and left the room abruptly.

Later as the day commenced Brandon had tried to avoid Callie and she tried her best to avoid him but their individual business kept them running into each other. It didn’t help that they lived in the same house of course they would run into each other so that couldn’t be helped. 

As hard as they tried to ignore it they couldn’t help but glance into each other’s eyes every now and then, both wondering what the other was thinking. Both thinking of something more, a longing they couldn’t have. They shook it off, tried their best to anyways. Nothing worked though. Not only were they bumping into each other, or trying to avoid each other or even thinking about each other, it didn’t help when Mariana brought up the subject.

*****

“What the hell was that,” Mariana asked Callie a couple hours later as they were in the kitchen.

“What was what?”

“You know what. I mean seriously Callie. I get how you feel about him and it sucks but at least try.”

“You think I’m doing this on purpose?”

“Well can you blame me?”

“All I want is for him to be happy. As for what happened earlier look I don’t know what happened okay. It’s just a stupid dress, one that I wouldn’t be caught dead wearing. I mean come on peach frills, even you hated it.”

“Sure but at least I wasn’t a bitch about it.”

“I don’t know what happened,” she repeated. “One minute I was complaining about the dress and the rest just kind of came out.”

“Yeah well you’re lucky she didn’t know what you were talking about.”

Stef walked into the room and smiled at her daughters, “Talking about what?”

“Just about how nice the dresses are that Eliza picked out,” said Mariana.

Callie smiled softly and nodded fearing that if she opened her mouth she would spill out her secrets.

“I don’t know,” said Stef, “they seem a little much.”

“Well it is her wedding,” Mariana falsely defended, “we don’t exactly have a say.” She looked at her sister, “in any of it.”

*****

Callie was sitting up in her bed at night. Mariana was fast asleep, Callie jealous of how easy it was for her. Mariana had just as busy a day and she’d fallen to sleep as if nothing. Callie did her best but nothing was working.

“Can you stop moving,” Mariana asked, her eyes still closed.

Callie looked at her and slid into her bed. She turned to one side then to another, neither of them working, fluffing her pillows, that didn’t help either. 

“Seriously,” Mariana started to complain.

Callie took a deep breath, finally giving up. She lay flat on her back, her thoroughly fluffed pillow underneath her head. It still didn’t feel comfortable enough but both would have to do. Unable to close her eyes she just lay there looking up at the ceiling, her hands folded beneath her head. She cursed herself for everything from the moment she’d gotten the news of Brandon’s engagement. She wanted to be happy for him more than anything but there was a part of her, that part of her deep down that would always feel the pain of having lost him even though that loss had been ages ago. Callie tossed her head to the left, to the right before settling again to the center. She wanted more than anything to go to sleep, to let her mind take itself off of Brandon but her mind just would not shut off. He was all she could think about.

*****

“Callie,” Brandon whispered as he crept into her room a couple hours when Mariana was completely asleep. “Callie, you up?”

Callie turned to look at him. He placed his hand on her lips and raised a finger to his as a way of keeping her silent. “Come on,” he said to her.

Callie looked over at Mariana, they both did, and then she slipped out of bed. Quietly she followed Brandon downstairs and out toward the backyard to the pavilion.

“Brandon, what are we-,”

“It’s weird isn’t it?”

“What is?”

“Us, this whole thing.”

“We said it wasn’t remember.”

“Come on we both know that wasn’t true.”

“It had to be. I mean Brandon, you’re getting married this month so what are we doing out here, really?”

“I just wanted to talk to you.”

“About what?”

“Maybe I’m making a mistake, Callie.”

“No, no you’re not. You’re marrying her, end of story.”

“Is it, is it the end of our story? Callie, remember when I told you that what we have happens once in a lifetime?”

Callie took a deep breath, “I remember but Brandon that was a long time ago.”

“Well I meant it and I still do.”

She crossed her arms. “Yeah well sometimes we don’t always get that lifetime do we?”

“I’ll always love you for a lifetime.”

“Brandon, please don’t.”

“Don’t what?”

“Come on Brandon, you’re getting married so don’t do this.”

“I don’t have to. You know what I told mom’s in the kitchen the other day. I practically told them I didn’t want to get married right away.”

“Then why not say that? I get that it’s because of her, because it’s what she wants but what about you? If she cared about you, if she even loved you she’d think about you first.  
”  
“Is that what you’re doing?”

“What?”

“Is that what you’re doing, you’re trying to make me happy when you’re clearly not.”

“This isn’t about me.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. I heard you the other night, Callie, I heard you play our song. You’ve been playing it for days.”

“It’s just a song,” Callie said trying to brush it off.

It was more than just a song. It was the very song that they’d played together not long after Callie had come to live with them, the day he’d given her the guitar.

“It’s not just a song and you know it. Come on,” he said taking her hand.

“Brandon what are you…Brandon.”

“He’d led her to the shed where his other piano was and an extra guitar.

“Play with me.”

“No.”

“Play with me,” he urged.

He took a seat and began to press on the keys the very tune. 

“I’m not going to stop unless you play with me, now come on.”

Callie reluctantly sat on the chair next to him and picked up the guitar. Brandon stopped and let Callie start until it was his time to come in. Then the two of them began playing together. It felt so normal, so natural. The two made glances at each other and couldn’t help but smile. It was so easy and felt so right. 

“I used to play this a lot,” Brandon admitted when he came to a stop, “whenever it was just me or whenever I needed something to relax to. It’s always been you, Callie but you know that. Even after all this time, even with what’s going on now it’s always been you and after the other night I’m guessing you have too.” 

“Brandon I can’t do this. We can’t.”

“We already have Callie. No matter what we do we can’t break away from each other.”

“Why are you doing this, Brandon?”

“Let’s just say hearing you play the song actually reminded me.”

“It was a long time ago.”

“It’s still our song, you can’t deny that.”

Callie shook her head, “I don’t know what we’re supposed to do now, Brandon. Sure I’ve played that song. I have played it over and over but every time I have it’s broken a piece of me because I know I can’t have you but now playing with you again, it’s put that piece together and it scares me.”

“It scares me too,” he admitted, “but playing with you feels right. Everything about you feels right.”

“Even the way you look at me? Come on I’m not blind, Brandon, I’ve seen the way you look at me. You don’t look at me the way you look at her.”

“That’s because I don’t feel the same way about her the way I feel about you.”

“Brandon-,” 

“Look I know this whole thing is screwed up. It’s really screwed up but I’m done trying to fight it aren’t you? It’s too hard. Every relationship we’ve ever had has been to stay away from each other. I thought this whole thing with Eliza would just seal it.”

“Then why hasn’t it? No seriously, if you wanted that so much, and if I wanted you to be happy which I still do, then why come and get me in the middle of the night for this?”

“I don’t know,” he said in defeat, “I guess I just had to see for myself if there was still anything between us and from where I’m standing there still is if it wasn’t then we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

Callie couldn’t object to that as much as she wanted to which she didn’t. There were plenty of times she could have walked away, she could have even had stayed in bed and not followed Brandon outside. She could have not played with Brandon as much as he told her to, she didn’t have to do anything. Instead she stayed as if compelled by an unseen force, in this case that unseen force being the looks in their eyes and the music that they’d played.

“You’re engaged.”

“I don’t have to be.”

“Brandon it’s only been three days don’t you think you’re acting too hastily?”

“No I don’t.”

“Then you’re doing this just because you heard me play a song.” 

“I’m doing it because I was reminded Callie, not just because of the song.”

“Then why Brandon, tell me why, the real reason.”

“The real reason?”

“Yes.”

“The real reason is because I love you, Callie, I am still in love with you.”

“Don’t.”

“You wanted to know so now you’re going to know everything. I thought I could move on, I wanted to, I tried but it always comes back to you. I can’t marry Eliza, I thought I could but yes the song has something to do with it because when I heard you play, god Callie, it brought everything back. The moment you came to live with us I knew that was it for me. I can’t imagine my life with anyone but you.”

“We are in each other’s lives, Brandon. I mean you’re my best friend.”

“It’s not enough.” 

Brandon went over to his piano. He began to play the notes. “Play with me.”

“We already did.”

“Play with me again and tell me you don’t feel something. You can’t stand there and deny that what we have isn’t real.”

Callie hesitated. She wanted to walk away, at least she tried to convince herself of that but instead of walking away she took a seat next to Brandon and picked up the guitar and begun to strum. This time Brandon set the recorder on his piano so that he could record their music. At the end of the song Brandon pressed the stop record button and then played the track back to them, placing it on repeat.

They looked into each other’s eyes and Brandon walked over to Callie who placed the guitar off to the side and stood up. He took her face in his hands. Their lips met softly at first and then ferociously. They made their way over to the couch and Callie lay on her back with Brandon on top of her. It had been so long since they’d last done this but it felt so natural, so right, almost as if no time had passed at all, like nothing had changed. 

“You can’t tell me this doesn’t feel right,” Brandon said as he was on top of Callie.

“You’re right I can’t but we can’t do this here,” she said trying to stop but unable to as she kissed him harder.

*****

“Oh my god!” Mariana said.

“Shit,” Brandon said as he got off of Callie. “Mariana!” he said as he walked to the other end of the room while Callie got up and sat on the couch, looking away from her sister.

“Hey wasn’t that the song you’ve been playing these past few days,” Mariana asked Callie.

“What the heck are you even doing here,” Callie asked.

“What do you think,” asked Mariana. “You left our room and I figured it was with Brandon so I started to worry. Do you know how freaked out mom’s would be if they saw you like this?”

“Saw them like what?” Stef said as she and Lena came into the shed.

The two of them looked at their three kids. Then to the music that was still on repeat.

“What’s going on?”

Brandon went over and pressed stop. “Nothing.”

“Nothing hu,” said Lena. 

“We were just playing some music,” said Brandon.

Stef looked at them, “In the middle of the night.”

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Callie?” said Stef.

“Couldn’t sleep either,” she said as she looked at her mom’s.

Lena looked at Mariana, “Mariana, what about you?”

“Figured I’d get some fresh air.”

“Oh please, Mariana,” said Stef, “we all know you’re a terrible liar. The truth.”

Mariana looked at Brandon and Callie so Stef and Lena did too.

“Now please, one of you.”

Again the kids remained silent.

Stef placed a hand on her head and winced. “I’m going to take a wild guess here and please for the love of god tell me I’m wrong. B, Callie…”

“Stef you don’t think-,” said Lena.

“Well what else am I supposed to think, Lena?”

“It was just a song,” said Brandon. 

“It’s more than just the song, B,” said Stef. “You two aren’t…”

“So what if we are?”

“Brandon!” said Callie.

“No, Cal,” he said to her and then looked back at his moms. “So what if Callie and I still have feelings for each other, that hasn’t changed.”

“Callie is this true,” asked Lena.

There was no use in denying it any longer. The last thing Callie wanted to do was to have it seem like she was sabotaging Brandon’s engagement but she figured that was how her mom’s would see it. If she openly admitted it all she could think about was that they would put the blame on her. What did it matter at this point? They had already been caught by Mariana so she might as well come clean to it.

“Yeah, yeah it’s true,” Callie admitted.

“You guys,” said Lena.

“We thought this was over,” said Stef. “It was supposed to be over. I mean what were the past several years just a ruse?”

“No,” said Callie.

“Of course not,” said Brandon.

“Then what?” asked Stef.

Lena looked at Callie, “Callie was this your way of getting Brandon-,”

“I know where you’re going with this,” said Brandon, “don’t blame Callie, this is on me.”

“Brandon-,” said Callie.

“No,” he again said to her and then back to their mom’s. “If you’re going to blame someone blame me. I’m the one who convinced Callie to come outside with me. I’m the one who shouldn’t have proposed to Eliza in the first place when I knew it was a mistake.”

“Brandon do you realize what you’re even saying?” asked Lena.

Brandon looked at Callie. “Look I’m sorry,” he said speaking more directly to her, “I’m sorry about how this all went down but I am not sorry for loving you. I never have been. Guess the question you have to ask yourself is do you love me to?”

Callie took a deep breath. Suddenly no one else in the garage mattered. She replayed the song in her head and that was all she needed to confirm what had been inside she first met Brandon.

Callie reached out for Brandon’s hand, “You know that I do.”

Stef took a hard breath and rolled her head and said, “Well this is just great. So now what, you two ride off into the sunset together?”

“Stef-,”

“What, Lena?”

“They’re adults now we can’t exactly stop them anymore.”

Stef lowered her shoulders. “Yeah I know that and that’s the problem here. You two really want to be together?” she asked them.

Brandon brought Callie in closer. “Yeah, we do.”

“Then this whole mess you created with Eliza is one you’ll have to fix on your own.”

“I know that and I will.”

“Wait,” said Mariana, “so you’re really allowing this,” she said with a smile she couldn’t contain.

“You’re actually happy about this,” Stef said to her.

“Yeah why not. I mean this thing hasn’t exactly gone away. Come on, I’m not the only one who didn’t believe for a second that they wouldn’t end up back together. I mean it’s Brallie.”

“What?” said Callie.

“Oh just a name I came up with you years ago. Brandon, Callie, Brallie. Cute right?”

“Okay,” said Lena, “with all of this…taken care of, it’s late, we should all get some sleep.”

Stef pointed at Brandon and Callie, “in separate beds.”

The two nodded.

“Can you give us a minute longer,” Brandon asked.

“Fine,” said Stef, “but don’t stay out here all night.”

“We won’t,” said Callie.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Stef said as she and Lena walked out.

“Yes you can,” said Mariana as she followed them.

*****

“What are you going to tell Eliza?” Callie asked.

“The truth. That it’s moving too fast, that we’re too young and that this was a mistake.”

“And the other part?”

“I figure I’ll leave you out of it. She doesn’t need to know about us. I don’t want to hurt her like that.”

Callie nodded. “So then this is really happening, you and me I mean?”

Brandon held Callie’s hands and looked at her, “Yeah this is really happening.”

Callie smiled and brought Brandon closer, their lips met, not as strongly as before but strong enough to confirm that they were now together. 

“Come on,” he said, “We should get some sleep.”

“Wait, wait,” Callie said as she went over to the guitar. She picked it up and smiled at Brandon. “Just one more?”

He smiled back and took a seat. Callie began to strum the chords and Brandon began playing shortly after. It brought them both back to that first night and now had brought a bookend to their relationship, a brand new start that both were excited for and one that had brought them back together all because of a simple song.

**Author's Note:**

> The song they first played together has always been my favorite. I really wanted to get back to that


End file.
